Das Nibelungenlied: Song of the Nibelungs

No poem in German literature is as well known and studied in Germany and continental Europe as the 800-year-old Das Nibelungenlied. In the English-speaking world, however, the poem has remained underappreciated, largely because there has been no adequate verse translation. This new translation by eminent translator Burton Raffel brings the epic poem to life in English for the first time, rendering it in verse that does full justice to the original Middle High German. His translation underscores the all-important formal aspects of the poem and preserves its haunting beauty. Often called the German lliad, Das Nibelungenlied is a heroic epic both national in character and sweeping in scope. The poem moves inexorably from romance through tragedy to holocaust. It portrays the existential struggles and downfall of an entire people, the Burgundians, in a military conflict with the Huns and their king.